Names, names, names

So uhh how did you go through the process of deciding on a name? If you even changed your name at all... did you just look and try things out to find which one fit or was there more to the methodology?

I do not have to change my name because I am not trandgendered, but if there was a name you have always loved, maybe even one you considered for a child (assuming you have not already used it) I would think that would be a good place to start.

It took me a little while to settle into a name, and admittedly before I really came out to people I didn't really even have on picked out for myself. I settled on Katherine for my fem self (or more often, Kat) because it has plenty of variations (Katherine, Kate, Kate, Katie, etc.), and seemed to suit me and my partner just fine. It's worked out pretty well, and even though I have no plans to legally change my name or gender presentation having a name to go-by when presenting as female is pretty helpful in a lot of situations.

I was considering using my own name >_> It's Jessica and shortening it to Jesse... I don't like over-complicating things >.< and that seems pretty easy heh. Since everyone I know refers to me as Jess, Lil Bit or Lil Ninja (don't ask about those last two =o= I've really no idea WHY)

I do plan on one day legally changing my name, not that it would make much difference with my family x_x they use my middle name regardless that I've expressed interest in them using my first name. It's incredibly confusing to everyone else b/c they don't know me by that name and my family has to be all irritating and stupid because they want me to be the person I personally associate with my middle name; and that was me when I was a child, before I moved... and I'm not that person anymore and that name feels foreign to me >.< I answer it on reflex baaa. So coming up to my family and saying "hey call me Jesse k?" would probably be equally as ignored so they really aren't at all a part of this situation. x_x as difficult as that makes things

ANYWHO to the first commenter:
I never considered having kids >_> so I never had names picked out. The only thing I've used names for are characters I've made up for short stories or drawings (and how awkward would that be to use?) So I'm kinda blarg about that.

EF needs to make a method of tagging multiple responses in a post x_X so I don't have to quote everyone to respond to.

I think it all has to do with how you feel personally. I know some people asks family for suggestions. Or they find names they like. Or ones which just work for them. I used my name because it was for personal gender anyway.

I searched baby name sites for a few weeks, writing down all the names I liked. Then I eliminated the ones that were too exotic or too plain, I narrowed it down to 3 or 4, looked at all the different spellings of them, then had my friends at school (I was in high school at the time) call me by one name a day, to see if it felt right. The name I ended up with stuck immediately, I chose my favorite spelling, and legally got it changed at 18 (about 2 years after I picked it).

I got lucky, my female name has a close male relative and they both use the same nickname
my middle name is unisex in pronunciation, but I'm changing the spelling
go for something that's not too much of a stretch or it'll be really hard for people to pick it up, even if they want to

i went by kaden for a long time. i know, ugh. join the club, k. EVERYONE is going by kaden.
and that's why i changed it. unlike most of the others, my name had i been born male actually would have been kaden. it seemed like the easy fit.
changed the d to an l. okay, kalen sounds good. i didn't really like the spelling but i wasn't bothered. then my female baby cousin took the name for herself. lovely.
i googled for awhile. kaelan is the male version of this ridiculous kailyn trend here in the states. it's gaelic, and i think that's cool because my family is originally from ireland. beyond that, i used to be called a nickname when i was a kid. my first initial (k) and the first syllable of my middle name (len). so putting them together resulted in kaelan. i've since realized that there are a lot of kaels in this community. i don't go by kael, though, so i guess it's okay. it's kaelan or kae, and i'll change it legally as soon as i can

My birthname is Cristina. When I was little I always wanted people to/wondered why people didn't call me Cris. And I /loved/ Winnie the Pooh as a kid. So I choose Christopher. It's close enough but different, and- I don't know it just clicks

So uhh how did you go through the process of deciding on a name? If you even changed your name at all... did you just look and try things out to find which one fit or was there more to the methodology?

I had a tough time with this. Ultimately I just asked my parents to re-name me, but that was tough for them as well :\. Usually, the more common names are a safer bet if you want to remain "stealth" as well as for a variety of other reasons.

So uhh how did you go through the process of deciding on a name? If you even changed your name at all... did you just look and try things out to find which one fit or was there more to the methodology?

So uhh how did you go through the process of deciding on a name? If you even changed your name at all... did you just look and try things out to find which one fit or was there more to the methodology?

I started life as _______ Eugenia Lastname.

That name lasted for twenty years, before I was married and it became _______ Eugenia Newlastname (which I preferred).

And now I'm transitioning.

And I need a new name, because my birth one, even with the new and much preferred last name is inarguably feminine.

Back during college I played Shadowrun and created a character by the name of Mace. The character was female, but heavily masculine. Like me, as far as everyone else knew. I started being called Mace by friends everywhere.

It fit me, but it wasn't 'perfect'. And then I realized...Mace was a nickname. Nicknames are often shortened names. And I came to realize that I'm not _______. I'm Mason.

But I needed a middle name as well.

I've always shortened Eugenia to Eugene mentally. My mother and father used to both lecture me since I would insist on writing Eugene instead when filling out paperwork. Eugene was my grandfather that died when my mother was only fifteen, twenty-three years before I was born.

I wanted a name that meant something to me, and I had an idea of what I wanted, so I looked for names that had meanings that I liked, and then tried calling myself that for a few days (in my head) and finally one stuck

So uhh how did you go through the process of deciding on a name? If you even changed your name at all... did you just look and try things out to find which one fit or was there more to the methodology?

Baby books lots of them and old year books so that I fit in with my generation.